Michigan's Kevin VanDam is Fourth After First Day of Bassmaster Classic

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Published: 23 February 2013

TULSA, Okla. — Mississippi’s Cliff Pace and New Jersey’s Michael Iaconelli shared the spotlight Friday with a tie at 21 pounds, 8 ounces for the lead in the 2013 Bassmaster Classic presented by Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tulsa.

Pace pulled off his 20-plus in the last few hours of competition by adding a 6-pound, 8-ounce bass. That big one and another fish came after a nerve-racking lull of almost two hours on Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees without a bite.

“I don’t know if I just wasn’t around them, or they weren’t in the right frame of mind to bite. But then I caught two pretty good fish in the last couple of hours,” he said.

If Pace, who is from Petal, Miss., can keep his momentum and win, it would be his first Classic victory. He came close in 2008 on South Carolina’s Lake Hartwell when he finished second to Alton Jones; the Texan won that year by more than 5 pounds.

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Muskegon Lake Announced as Site of Third Annual Toyota All-Star Week

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Published: 21 February 2013

TULSA, Okla. — The heroes of the Bassmaster Elite Series, the best collegiate anglers in the nation, top amateurs from B.A.S.S.’s grass roots and professionals looking for their last chance to qualify for the 2014 Bassmaster Classic now know the route to their dreams, as B.A.S.S. revealed the sites of four 2013 championships.

Bruce Akin, B.A.S.S. CEO, announced the tournament locations in a press conference Thursday during Bassmaster Classic Week in Tulsa.

• The third annual Toyota All-Star Week heads for Muskegon, Mich., and Muskegon Lake, Sept. 27-29.
• The Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship moves to Chatuge Reservoir and Young Harris College in Young Harris, Ga., Aug. 1-3.
• The Bassmaster Wild Card event, which offers top-level pros an additional chance to qualify for the Classic, will be held on Florida’s Lake Okeechobee, Dec. 5-7.
• And amateurs from around the nation and the world will gather at Lake Dardanelle in Arkansas for the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship, Oct. 24-26.

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